Behind The Scenes At The Museum

By: Kate Atkinson

Narrated by: Susan Jameson

Ruby Lennox was conceived grudgingly by Bunty and born while her father, George, was in the Dog and Hare in Doncaster telling a woman in an emerald dress and a D-cup that he wasn't married. Bunty had never wanted to marry George, but here she was, stuck in a flat above the pet shop in an ancient street beneath York Minster, with sensible and sardonic Patrica aged five, greedy cross-patch Gillian who refused to be ignored, and Ruby...

Ruby tells the story of The Family, from the day at the end of the nineteenth century when a travelling French photographer catches frail beautiful Alice and her children, like flowers in amber, to the startling, witty, and memorable events of Ruby's own life.

Critic reviews

Delivers its jokes and its tragedies as efficiently as Dickens...outrageously funny on almost every page...will dazzle readers for years to come. (Hilary Mantel)

'A debut novel of astonishing confidence and skill...Acutely observant, overflowing with good jokes, it is the work of an author who loves her characters and sets them playing with gleeful energy'

'An astounding book...without doubt one of the finest novels I have read for years'

'Little short of a masterpiece...Fizzing with wit and energy, Kate Atkinson's hilarious novel made me laugh and cry'

'A blinding debut from a Yorkshire mother-of-two who could be Alan Bennett's baby sister...straight-up simplicity veils the depth, poignancy and poetry of her story'

A first novel written so fluently and wittily that I sailed through it as though blown by an exhilarating wind. I loved it

'Enchanting. It hops with sprightly omniscence from past to future and back again'

A really gripping, emotionally satisfying family saga written with warmth and wit. I've re-read it countless times.

Such a memorable book

Fabulous narration to another beautifully crafted Kate Atkinson novel. A book so worthy of your time.

Marvellous

Marvellous performance, family saga & perspectives. You'll laugh and still feel the sadness underneath it all. Enjoy

Excellent writing and performance

This book will make you laugh out loud in one breath and want to cry in the next. Many layers of this story unfold gradually.

Atkinson, as usual, writes excellently and delivers complex characters and tackles difficult issues. Susan Jameson brings these characters to life in a way which complements the book wonderfully.

Highly recommended, as always.

beautiful

Beautifully written and performed. the story line is good and insightful. I personally really like this book.

Kate is something else:)

I had read other books by Kate before and bought this one soon after starting Audible. But at the time, I felt it was too aggressive and cynical. Yet after listen to too many mediocre stories, I felt it was time to give it another try. Maybe because I am an older mother and daughter now, it hit the mark with the tragedy of everyday life and lost dreams. In the end it was beautiful and gave me a new perspcetive of my own tragedies and family with more peace.